My Afternoon With a Gentleman (England and OC)
by MeitanteiKoko
Summary: Olivia goes to the library and meets a newly hired employee whom she eventually finds is named Arthur Kirkland. After a bit of talking, she realizes they have the same taste in stories. Before she even notices, they end up talking the night away! (I promise it is a bit more appealing than it sounds. I am not very good at giving summaries)


Olivia walked from her house into her favorite library out of all of them. It wasn't too long a walk, really. Ten minutes at most. It was very relaxing. She picked out three books and sat down. After she flipped open the first page, she couldn't stop reading. The only time she ever got up was when…

"Oi! Are you going to be checking those out or leaving them here? We are closing" an English accent yelled. She flipped her wrist and checked her watch. Damn! She really had spent the whole day here. Eh. Not a bad way to do so, though. She looked up in the direction of where the voice came from, and her heart stopped. The man standing there had the most stunning green eyes she'd ever seen. "I-uh. I will check these out" she murmured. He nodded.

"Then hand them here, please" he requested. She did as he asked, and he curiously looked over the books. His eyebrow raised when he saw what she chose. _Hamlet_, _The Valley of Fear_, and _The Murder of Roger Ackroyd_ were not exactly the titles he expected to see, but it pleased him nonetheless to know that someone else enjoyed good literature. "You've quite the taste in books, Miss" he said with a smirk. She looked down. "Th-thanks" she stuttered.

She then looked over and noticed how many books he had left to put back on the shelves. "Do you mind if I help?" she inquired. "Not at all" was his response. And thus the two began setting the books back to their original positions.

"Hey, I don't think I have seen you here before. You wouldn't happen to be a new employee?" she asked, placing a book on the shelf. "You would be correct. You seem to be quite good at catching onto things, I must say" he remarked. She looked down. "Er…not really. I just come here a lot" she shyly replied.

As they finally put the last book away, the girl gave a sigh of relief. The man just looked at her and smiled. While they were walking out, he reminded himself that it was his final chance and that he had to take it. "S-so, uh…Miss? I was wondering if I c-could take you over there to the litt-le café? I mean, if you wanted. It's not like I really wanted to go there" he stammered, looking around every which way. She laughed, and he looked horrified. Well, this was embarrassing. As soon as she added the "of course", his face lit up some…until he put on a cold expression to mask it.

They walked over to the café, Olivia with her books, and both ordered Earl Grey tea. Arthur insisted on paying, so he did after a long quarrel. They sat down at a table and the tea was brought to them shortly afterwards.

"I believe I forgot to properly introduce myself. My apologies. My name is Arthur Kirkland, although you can just address me as Arthur" he said. "Oh. I see. It is nice to meet you, Arthur. My name is Olivia Paxton, but you can call me Olivia" she introduced herself. "It is lovely to meet you as well. And Olivia…you know, the first time that name was used was-" he began. "Shakespeare's _Twelfth Night_!" they exclaimed in unison. "Nerds" the cashier coughed.

Long after they finished their tea, they remained talking. They got to know more about one another and each other's hobbies, then spoke of their favorite tales and authors. It was time for the café to close. The two sat on the bench outside. Arthur proceeded to tell Olivia stories of England's history: the lineage of many kings and queens (both good and bad), hardships and victories from the many wars, America's revolt against England, and the time the black death struck with a devastating effect. The young girl looked up at him, eyes wide and curious. The way the man described these things so vividly made it seem as if he lived through the events himself.

She eventually fell asleep. After all, it had grown late. Arthur chuckled when her head fell over onto his shoulder. He slid his jacket off, careful not to awaken her, and placed it over her. He looked up at the starry sky. Today, he had made a new friend.


End file.
